Unrest in Istanbul

Everything seemed to be going so well in Turkey—until this past summer when popular protests broke out and were met by a violent government crackdown.

The country is in many ways the Middle East’s success story. Under a charismatic leader, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the ruling Justice and Development Party (known by its Turkish initials as the AKP) has enjoyed a level of electoral success not seen in Turkey since the 1950s, and its political achievements have been remarkable.